UnderConstruction Program

This year, the UnderConstruction Program celebrates 10 years of providing metro-area youth with hands-on experience and exposure to apprenticeship careers in the construction trades.

The program is training 36 youth from the ages of 15 to 21 at three different sites. The students are building garages in St. Paul's Frogtown neighborhood and porches and decks in North Minneapolis.

During the eight-week paid experience (in the earn-as-you-learn-apprenticeship-model), students perform various aspects of carpentry, cement masonery, block-setting, roofing and siding under the guidance of a construction lead trainer and a youth manager.

The students receive an OSHA 10 certification and have a chance to tour various training program facilities such as the sheet metal and the sprinkler-fitters programs. More importantly, the interns learn what it means to be a good and productive employee at whatever career they may choose.

UnderConstruction hosted its annual open house day July 24, 2014, at its the St. Paul Frogtown worksite. More than 60 contractors, union training programs, government and school officials had the chance to tour site and chat with the interns about their future plans in construction.